Here Come Poppy and Max

Making her debut, Gardiner introduces gangly, black-haired Poppy and her spotted dog, Max, both of whom enjoy imitating Poppy's ""favorite animals."" They can roar like a tiger, stand on one leg like a flamingo and bounce like a kangaroo. Gardiner emphasizes the uncanniness of their impersonations on each spread, by pairing each performance with a portrait of the actual animal. Drawing on her roots as a fabric designer, she features Poppy in a giraffe-print dress as the girl ""walks tall"" and clad in yellow boots that recall webbed feet when the heroine ""splashes like a duck."" Even after Poppy's homage to her favorite septet of wild animals, Max remains her ""favorite of all,"" and Max ""loves Poppy just the way she is."" The bright and energetic pictures of Max emulating Poppy imitating a flamingo or leopard will tickle funny bones. Ages 2-6. (Sept.)